If there’s a blue wave coming in the midterm elections, don’t expect conservative activists like John Berry to run from the shore.

John Berry of the Redlands Tea Party Patriots (File photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

“None of the people going to (the Fifth Annual Unite Inland Empire Conservative Conference) are intimidated by the so-called blue wave,” Berry said of the prediction that a backlash against President Donald Trump will help Democrats take control of the House of Representatives, and maybe the Senate, in November.

While acknowledging the party in the White House historically loses seats in the midterms, “I don’t think it’s going to play out as much as what the media thinks,” said Berry, a cabinet member in the Redlands Tea Party Patriots. “There might be a blue trickle or a blue ripple. But it won’t intimidate anyone from voting.”

“The Midterm Battleground Talkers Tour” is the theme of this year’s conference, which will be held Sunday, April 8 at the Riverside Convention Center, 3637 5th St.

The keynote speaker will be former Trump White House adviser Sebastian Gorka. Republican gubernatorial candidates Travis Allen and John Cox are expected to attend, as are conservative talk show hosts Larry Elder and Hugh Hewitt.

The conference allows Southern California conservatives to gather, network, share strategies and gain inspiration in a state where Democrats make up a plurality of voters and hold all statewide offices, a majority in the state legislature, 39 of 53 House seats and both U.S. Senate seats.

California also is a hotbed of resistance to Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress. Local Democratic leaders report seeing a surge of enthusiasm, grassroots activity among progressives is in high gear and Inland marches this year calling attention to women’s issues and gun control attracted thousands of protesters.

“With Trump, every day is Christmas,” Berry said. “He’s fulfilling his pledges. He’s doing the best he can despite an adversarial media and hostile Democrats.”

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With Republicans largely playing defense to hold their congressional majority in the midterms, local conservatives are playing offense. Signature gathering is under way for a ballot measure to repeal the legislature’s gas tax increase, and another effort seeks a ballot measure to repeal California’s so-called “sanctuary state law” intended to shield undocumented immigrants from deportation.

“The whole sanctuary state madness has fired up conservatives,” Berry said. “Any lethargy they may have had about not participating has gone away. The idea that this state cares more about illegal aliens than about citizens has fired up our base.”

What’s not clear is whether Cox or Allen, who are the leading GOP candidates for governor, will make it beyond the June 5 primary. The top two vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the November general election, and there’s a possibility the November matchup will feature two Democrats in the races for governor and U.S. senator.

“I’m as confident about (Allen or Cox) getting into the top two as I am about the Dodgers winning their division,” said Berry, whose tea party group backs Allen. “It’s clear in the polling one of them is going to get into the top two.”

Being a Californian conservative, Berry said, means having fun.

“You’ve got to understand how much fun this is,” he said. “To be a rebel in California is to be a conservative.”

IF YOU GO

The Fifth Annual United Inland Conservative Conference will feature keynote speaker Sebastian Gorka and Republican gubernatorial candidates Travis Allen and John Cox among other guests.

When: Sunday, April 8. The VIP lunch starts at 11:30 a.m., doors open for the main program at 12:30 and the main program goes from 1:30 to 5.

Jeff Horseman got into journalism because he liked to write and stunk at math. He grew up in Vermont and he honed his interviewing skills as a supermarket cashier by asking Bernie Sanders “Paper or plastic?” After graduating from Syracuse University in 1999, Jeff began his journalistic odyssey at The Watertown Daily Times in upstate New York, where he impressed then-U.S. Senate candidate Hillary Clinton so much she called him “John” at the end of an interview. From there, he went to Annapolis, Maryland, where he covered city, county and state government at The Capital newspaper before love and the quest for snowless winters took him in 2007 to Southern California, where he started out covering Temecula for The Press-Enterprise. Today, Jeff writes about Riverside County government and regional politics. Along the way, Jeff has covered wildfires, a tropical storm, 9/11 and the Dec. 2 terror attack in San Bernardino. If you have a question or story idea about politics or the inner workings of government, please let Jeff know. He’ll do his best to answer, even if it involves a little math.